A group of dozens of UN experts, led by UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, issued an appeal on Sept. 5, urging the UN General Assembly to convene an emergency meeting on the horrific situation unfolding in Gaza. Immediate action, even before the Sept. 17 deadline, is urgent, they state. “At this critical moment, the world needs the General Assembly—the highest body of the United Nations—to take decisive leadership and act to prevent further catastrophe.”
“The horrors of death by starvation will intensify if Israel is not stopped. Already, half a million people in Gaza are starving. Have State authorities become so numb to these numbers—so desensitized, once again, to the systematic breaches of our collective moral and legal obligations?”
The experts call for six actions to be taken by the UNGA at such an emergency session:
1. Call on Member states to act under “uniting for peace” in line with General Assembly Resolution 377 V, and recommend a peace operation.
2. Demand the opening of all the crossings to unrestricted humanitarian access under direct UN oversight.
3. Demand the immediate suspension of failed or dangerous mechanisms, including those that have led to widespread killings at aid distribution points.
4. Call on Member States with ports in the Mediterranean Sea to urgently deploy emergency navies carrying humanitarian aid.
5. Request the authorisation of UN-led international humanitarian convoys with full UN authority to coordinate and supervise all crossings into Gaza.
6. Demand an immediate, permanent ceasefire and the release of arbitrarily detained Palestinians and Israelis alike.
